Automobiles

Amid all the futuristic vehicles, "green cars" and much-hyped "crossovers" being unveiled this week at the Detroit auto show, one of the biggest game changers coming to the American automotive market may be a simple price sticker. How's this for innovation: $14,000 for a fully loaded, mid-size sport utility vehicle with a leather interior. The catch: It's made in China.

Figuring out the value of a collectible car these days can be more like an episode of "CSI" than "Antiques Roadshow." Sure, a vehicle's condition and relative rarity are keys to its price on the auction block, but potential buyers have to be as concerned with authenticity. Does it have only factory-installed parts? Has the engine been replaced? Do all of the identifying numbers match? Are the documents genuine?

The first rule of selling station wagons is don't talk about station wagons. That's the marketing plan behind the stealthy return of one of the auto world's most practical -- and most ridiculed -- designs. For years, the mere idea of a wagon has been poison in the car world, resurrecting queasy carpool memories of ungainly giants like the Ford Country Squire and the Oldsmobile Vista Cruiser for a whole generation of drivers.

Suffering from lessee's remorse? In the past, making an early exit from a car lease was about as easy as getting out of jail free. Now a handful of websites are offering restless consumers a chance at freedom while also providing an option for those who want to lease but aren't happy with the terms their local dealerships are offering. Two leading lease transfer sites -- LeaseTrader.com and -- operate somewhat like the online car-selling services that have become common in recent years.

Corn is a key element of the U.S. food supply. It is what dairy cows eat to make milk and hens consume to lay eggs. It fattens cattle, hogs and chickens before slaughter. It makes soda sweet. As the building block of ethanol, it is now also a major component of auto fuel. And that may signal trouble ahead.

Ford Motor Co., the world's third-largest automaker, will accelerate introduction of new vehicles in the U.S. this year through mid-2009 as the company tries to stabilize sales, the company's sales chief said Tuesday. "From the summer of 2008 through the summer of 2009, Ford will be doing something it hasn't done a lot of lately and that's launching new products," Group Vice President Jim Farley said at an analyst presentation in New York. "We will be launching a new vehicle every month or two," he said.

Hundreds of drivers here will serve as guinea pigs in a test that's part sociology experiment, part environmental advocacy and part Driver's Ed 101. It poses the question: When motorists see how their own aggressive driving burns gasoline, will they stop the tailgating, hard braking and speeding that increases their fuel consumption and contributes to greenhouse gas emissions? Sponsored by EnCana Corp.

Nissan Motor Co. said Monday that it would make a new small car designed by Chrysler and that Chrysler would make a full-size pickup truck designed by Nissan. The agreement is part of a growing relationship between Chrysler and the No. 3 Japanese automaker as they try to adapt to markets buffeted by the economic slowdown and rising gasoline prices. Both products will be sold in North America, and the new Chrysler small car will also be sold in Europe and other global markets starting in 2010.

Some folks celebrate their last home mortgage payment by setting fire to their loan agreement. Lately, some people behind on their mortgages are simply setting fire to their homes. In what appears to be the latest symptom of the nation's mortgage meltdown and credit crisis, insurers, law enforcement officials and state agencies nationwide report a jump in home and automobile fires in the last year believed to have been set by owners unable to pay their debts.

Rep. Elton Gallegly of Simi Valley likes his taxpayer-funded Ford Expedition. He isn't worried that it's not the most fuel-efficient car. It's reliable, suits his mountainous district and is cheaper to lease than many other vehicles. "It's not a Cadillac. It's not a Lincoln. It's a Ford," the Republican congressman said with exasperation.